2014 Human Development Report Namibia launch

The national launch of the 2014 Human Development Report (HDR) took place in Namibia on Wednesday 13th August 2014. The 2014 HDR, entitled “Sustaining Human Progress: Reducing Vulnerabilities and Building Resilience,” shows that between 2000 and 2013, Sub-Saharan Africa had the second highest rate of progress in the Human Development Index (HDI), which combines achievements in income, health and education. Rwanda and Ethiopia achieved the fastest growth, followed by Angola, Burundi, Mali, Mozambique, the United Republic of Tanzania and Zambia.

In his remarks, the UNDP Resident Representative Mr. Musinga said that “While, Namibia has yet to make a radical breakthrough and is now ranked 127 out of 187 countries, yet when seen within the context of Africa, it is one of the better performers. It ranks fifth in the SADC region after Seychelles, Mauritius, Botswana and South Africa.”

Mr. Bandora continued that HDR “reports have facilitated the consensus that development should not me measured by economic growth alone but also by qualitative improvements in the human condition.”

The Resident Representative further emphasized that the “country has to put in place mechanisms to ensure robust resilience to avoid seeing reversals to the gains in economic and social development, and to be able to absorb potentially destabilizing shocks, of every kind and address vulnerabilities.”

A presentation by UNDP Senior Economist Mr. Ojijo Odhiambo provided a perspective on development trends from the report as well as human development indicators for Namibia. “There is a need for effective coordination between states and social institutions because Individuals, families, societies and states are inter-dependent and should all act in concert to reduce vulnerabilities,” He said.

Delivering his keynote address, the Director General of the National Planning Commission Mr. Tom Alweendo cited Namibia’s various achievements in forms of developments and sustained progress to date since independence. He further emphasized that Namibia does indeed have challenges and these are being addressed by the government. The Director General stated that Human Development is a global issue and no one country can tackle their human development needs by itself. There is, thus a need for countries across the globe to coordinate their efforts.

The 2014 Human Development Report was first officially launched in Japan in July 2014 by UNDP Chief Helen Clark, Report lead author Khalid Malik and Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The Report makes the case that preventing shocks and promoting opportunities for all—especially for those most at risk—can effectively help reduce vulnerabilities and build resilience. In addition, the Report argues that measures to create equal access to jobs, healthcare and education opportunities have an important role to play in promoting sustainable and equitable development.

The national launch ceremony was attended by heads of UN agencies, members of the diplomatic corps, local government officials, academia and the media.